Finland 2nd in cleantech index

Finland came in second out of 40 countries in the Global Cleantech Innovation Index, behind Denmark and ahead of Sweden. Finland held the same position in the previous index in 2014.

Solar power is one form of cleantech.
Image: Petteri Paalasmaa / AOP

Finland has placed second in the Global Cleantech Innovation Index 2017, a report conducted by the Cleantech Group with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) that periodically ranks countries by the ecological standards of growth companies. This is the third such report to be published.

The Nordic countries all did well in the international report, which ranked 40 countries around the world based on how green their rising firms are in their operations.

The top five countries in the index this year are Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Canada and the United States.

Energy efficiency and the traffic sector were main points of the 2017 Cleantech Index. Renewable energy solutions, networking prowess and funding capacity also gained companies points.

Finland's position can be explained by the ability to create early-stage innovations, the high number of patents and safeguarding capital investments to support new business. Finland also has a comparatively high number of cleantech jobs. Israel and Canada are the most similar to Finland in these respects.

Room for improvement

Some of Finland's weaknesses cited in the report include the inability to draw in cleantech investments. In this the country lags far behind its counterparts, beating only Russia, Greece and Indonesia in the investments race.

Commercialising and exporting innovations were also found to be a challenge for Finland.

Worldwide anti-global warming efforts have redoubled since the first GCII report in 2012. Cities, companies, governments and investors alike have started taking part in combating greenhouse gases and the unsustainable warming of the planet.